Power supplies with pre-powered active inrush current control circuits

ABSTRACT

Examples relate to power supply comprising a power source to generate an inrush current, an active inrush current control circuit that is electrically coupled between the power source and a bulk capacitor and that is to control inrush current to the bulk capacitor, and an energy storage component electrically coupled to the active inrush current control circuit that is to power the active inrush current control circuit prior to operation of the power supply.

BACKGROUND

Power supply circuits connected to a line voltage supply may besubjected to short-duration, high amplitude, input current (known asinrush current). The inrush current may be the steady state currentuntil the power supply reaches equilibrium, e.g., the transient effectcontinues until the voltage across the internal power supply capacitancereaches a voltage approximately equal to the peak amplitude of the linevoltage supply. If uncontrolled, the inrush current may result ininternal power supply capacitance absorbing energy beyond its ratedvalue as well as subjecting power supply components to damaging currentlevels that may potentially result in failures of said power supplycomponents, such as blowing fuses, wires, etc., or other externalcomponents such as breakers in a Power Distribution Unit (PDU).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following detailed description references the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example power supply with a pre-poweredactive inrush current control circuit, wherein the active inrush currentcontrol circuit is pre-powered by storage energy components.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of another example power supply with apre-powered active inrush current control circuit, wherein the activeinrush current control circuit is pre-powered by storage energycomponents, including a bias converter.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of another example power supply with a powerfactor correction control circuit to which the active inrush currentcontrol circuit is connected, including energy storage components topre-power the active inrush current control circuit.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an example method for pre-powering an activeinrush current control circuit in power supplies by energy storagecomponents electrically coupled to the active inrush current controlcircuit.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example computing device with aprocessing resource to execute instructions in a machine-readablestorage medium for pre-powering an active inrush current control circuitin power supplies by energy storage components electrically coupled tothe active inrush current control circuit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Inrush current control circuits may be incorporated in power supplydesigns, for example server power supply designs, for managing chargingof bulk capacitors during initial power-up. A bulk capacitor in a powersupply, that may be a combination of capacitors connected in series orin parallel, may be used to prevent the output of power supply fromdropping too far during the periods when the utility is not available.The use of inrush current control circuits may reduce the cost andcurrent capacity sizing for elements in power supplies designed forpreventing damage due to inrush current, such as input power lineconnectors, wiring, breakers and other input power line distributionhardware. Limiting load transients generated by inrush current furtherreduces cost by preventing the use of larger upstream input powersources.

However, active inrush current control circuits in power supplies areinitially un-energized and therefore, intelligent control of the activeinrush current control sequence (sequence of openings and closings ofswitches managed by the inrush current control circuit) applied to thepower supply, by means of a controller (with all their supportcircuitry), cannot be performed until input power from a power source ofthe power supply comes into the active inrush current control circuit(the controller is not powered until the bulk capacitor in the powersupply is charged by the power source of the power supply until apre-determined level). Besides, the active switches of the active inrushcurrent control circuits that apply the active inrush current controlsequence, e.g., transistors such as Field-Effect Transistors (FETs),Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs), etc., may have no gate drivesignals (drive gate signal are provided by the controller of the inrushcurrent control circuit) so they cannot be turned on or off as needed.Moreover, monitoring input current through a sense resistor that may beconnected to an operational amplifier in the active inrush currentcontrol circuit cannot be performed since the operational amplifier isalso initially un-powered.

To address these issues, examples disclosed herein describe an examplepower supply for controlling inrush current to a bulk capacitor of thepower supply. The power supply comprises a power source to generate theinrush current, an active inrush current control circuit that iselectrically coupled between the power source and the bulk capacitor andan energy storage component electrically coupled to the active inrushcurrent control circuit that is to power the active inrush currentcontrol circuit prior to operation of the power source. By havingpre-charged energy storage components powering the active inrush currentcontrol circuit prior to operation of the power source, intelligentcontrol over inrush current is available before input power is appliedto the power source. Besides, by having pre-charged energy storagecomponents energizing the active inrush current control circuit afterremoval of the power source, the solution may also provide intelligentcontrol for inrush currents when input power source recovers.

In some examples, the active inrush current control circuit comprises acontroller, e.g., a microcontroller or a control Integrated Circuit(IC), to generate the active inrush current control sequence applied toat least one switch of the power supply. The at least one switch openand closed based on the received active inrush current control sequence,allowing or avoiding the circulation of current from the power source tothe bulk capacitor. Said controller further allows to actively measurethe amount of inrush current coming from the power source and the amountof inrush current that is allowed to pass to the rest of components ofthe power supply, for example, to the bulk capacitor.

In some examples, the energy storage components may be pre-charged bythe power source through a converter selected form a group comprising abias converter, an output converter or an independent converter (notpart of another converter). In some other examples, after initialpower-up of the power supply and once the power supply reachesequilibrium (e.g. converters in power supply have started up and areoperating correctly), the energy storage components may be re-charged bythe power source through a converter selected from a group comprising abias converter, an output converter or an independent converter (notpart of another converter), these converters being from the primary sideof the power supply.

In some examples, the power supply further comprises a Power FactorCorrection (PFC) control circuit to correct a nonlinearity of the powersupply. In such examples, the switches receiving the active inrushcurrent control sequence from the active current control circuit may bepart of the PFC control circuit. In some other examples, the switchesreceiving the active inrush current control sequence from the activecurrent control circuit may be part of other elements of the powersupply, such as a rectifier. In some other examples, the switches may beselected from a group comprising electromechanical devices, electricaldevices, switching voltage regulators, transistors, relays, logic gates,binary state logics, or other type of electrical devices that mayinterrupt the current flow to the bulk capacitor.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an examplepower supply 100 with a pre-powered active inrush current controlcircuit 104, wherein the active inrush current control circuit 104 ispre-powered by storage energy components 105 electrically coupled to theactive inrush current control circuit 104. It should be understood thatthe power supply 100 depicted in FIG. 1 may include additionalcomponents and that some of the components described herein may beremoved and/or modified without departing from a scope of the powersupply 100.

The power supply 100 comprises a power source 101 connected to a PFCcontrol circuit 102 that is, in turn, connected to a bulk capacitor 103.The output of the bulk capacitor 103 is also connected to a load 106. Asused herein a “load” may comprise a power/energy consuming device, suchas a server, computing device, etc. In some examples, the load 106 mayreceive power from the bulk capacitor 103 by interposition of an outputconverter that is electrically coupled to the bulk capacitor 103 and tothe load 106. The power supply 100 also comprises an active inrushcurrent control circuit 104 connected to the PFC control circuit 102 andenergy storage components 105, such as capacitors, batteries,supercapacitors, hybrid-capacitor-battery components, combinationsthereof, etc., that are to power the active inrush current controlcircuit 104 prior to operation of the power source 101. In such example,the energy storage components 105 may be pre-charged and recharged bymeans of a connection with the power source 101.

The active inrush current control circuit 104 may comprise a controller,e.g., a microcontroller or a control Integrated Circuit (IC), whichmonitors the bulk capacitor voltage and the inrush current generated bythe power source 101. The controller generates and outputs an activeinrush current control sequence applied to at least one switch of thepower supply 100. The at least one switch open and closed based on thereceived active inrush current control sequence, allowing or avoidingthe circulation of current from the power source 101 to the bulkcapacitor 103. The controller may stop once the bulk capacitor ischarged up to a pre-determined level.

As used herein, the “power source” 101 may be an energy source thatprovides the energy to the load 106. The power source 101 is also togenerate the inrush current when the power supply 100 is initiallypowered-up. Thus, the power source 101 provides energy to the bulkcapacitor 103 which in turn provides energy in conjunction with thepower factor correction converter to the load 106, and as such, examplesof the power source 101 includes Alternating Current (AC) power sources,Direct Current (DC) power sources, power feeds, generators, powercircuits, energy storages, power systems, or other type of voltagesource capable of providing the input voltage and current to the rest ofcomponents of the power supply 100 and to the load 106. In someexamples, the power source 101 may be the energy source that powers andpre-charges the energy storage components 105 prior to operation of thepower supply 100 and that, after initial power-up of the power supply100 and once the power supply 100 reaches equilibrium, also re-chargesthe energy storage components 105.

As used herein, the “PFC control circuits” 102 may be control circuitsin power transmission systems that may reduce transmission losses andimprove voltage regulation at the load 106. PFC control circuits 102 mayrectify alternating current received from an alternating power sourceand provide power factor correction. PFC control circuits 102 may shapecurrent and maintain an output voltage. In some examples, the PFCcontrol circuit 102 may comprise a boost converter, a buck-boost PFCconverter, a buck PFC converter or other PFC converters.

As used herein, “bulk capacitor” 103 may be a combination of capacitors,connected in series or in parallel, which are to filter direct currentflow, to prevent the output of the power supply 100 from dropping toofar during the periods when current is not available and to instantlysupply energy stored in the bulk capacitor 103 to the load 106.

As used herein, “energy storage components” 105 may be elements able tocapture energy produced at one time, to store the captured energy for aperiod and to use the stored energy at a later time. Examples of energystorage components 105 may be capacitors, batteries, supercapacitors,hybrid-capacitor-battery components, combinations thereof, etc.

Managing the inrush of current into the bulk capacitor 103 by poweringthe active inrush current control circuit 104 prior to operation of thepower supply 100 and after power supply 100 is turned off, enables powersupply 100 to provide protection to hardware components that mayexperience failure and/or breakdown at a particular current level and toprovide an intelligent control over the active inrush current controlsequence managed by the inrush current control circuit 104. For example,the active inrush current control circuit 104 may manage the inrush ofcurrent to the bulk capacitor 103 by keeping the current level under aparticular threshold. This example may manage the inrush of currentwithout blowing fuses, breakers, and other hardware component associatedwith the power supply 100.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of another example power supply 200 with apre-powered active inrush current control circuit 202, wherein theactive inrush current control circuit 202 is pre-powered by storageenergy components 207, and including a bias converter 206. It should beunderstood that the power supply 200 depicted in FIG. 2 may includeadditional components and that some of the components described hereinmay be removed and/or modified without departing from a scope of thepower supply 200.

The power supply 200 comprises a power source 201 connected to a PFC andinrush current control circuit 202 that is, in turn, connected to a bulkcapacitor 203. The output of the bulk capacitor 203 is connected to aload 205 by interposition of an output converter 204. In the example ofFIG. 2, the PFC control circuit and the inrush current control circuitare shown as an element called power factor correction and inrushcurrent control circuit 202. However, the PFC control circuit and theinrush current control circuit may be two independent elementselectrically coupled as shown in FIG. 1. Besides, in the example of FIG.2 the output converter 204 is shown as being part of the power supply200, but in some other examples the output converter 204 may be part ofthe load 205.

The power supply 200 comprises an energy storage component 207, such asbatteries, capacitors, supercapacitors, hybrid-capacitor-batterycomponents, combinations thereof, etc., that is pre-charged andrecharged by means of a connection with the power source 201. Thepre-charged energy storage component 207 are to power the PFC and inrushcurrent control circuit 202 prior to operation of the power source 101,such that intelligent control over inrush current is available beforeinput power comes in by way of the active inrush current controlcircuit. The pre-charged energy storage component 207 are also to powerthe inrush current control circuit after input power from power sourceis removed such that intelligent control for inrush currents in powersupplies is also provided even when no input power from the power sourceis received.

The power supply 200 further comprises a bias converter 206 that iselectrically coupled between the PFC and inrush current control circuit202 and the output converter 204 and is for generating a bias signalaccording to a control voltage with energy from the bulk capacitor 203.The bias converter 206 may include a transistor and a current-to-voltagecircuit. The bias converter 203 is to provide overhead power to thepower supply 200, e.g., to take energy from the bulk capacitor 203 andconvert the energy for feeding control circuitry of the power supplyincluding both primary side components and secondary side components. Asshown in FIG. 2, the bias signal may be for feeding the PFC and inrushcurrent control circuit 202 and the output converter 204.

In some other examples, the energy storage component 207 may bepre-powered and recharged by an energy source selected from a groupcomprising the power source 201 through a power supply output rail(V_(OUT)), an energy source of the primary side of the power supplythrough a primary side rail (Primary V_(CC)), an energy sources from thesecondary side of the power supply through a secondary side rail(Secondary V_(CC)), a full voltage boosted bulk capacitor or anycombination thereof. The energy source may be the power source 201 ifthe energy source is on the primary side of the power supply 200 or maybe the power source of a parallel power supply if the energy source ison the secondary side of the power supply 200. In some other examples,the energy storage component 207 may be pre-powered and recharged by anenergy source by interposition of a charger to a pre-determined level.

In some examples, the output converter 204 may provide electricalisolation and produce a desired output voltage (tightening the outputvoltage range) to satisfy the voltage range of the load 205. In someother examples, power supply 200 may omit the output converter 204.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of another example power supply 300 with a PFCcontrol circuit 302 to which the active inrush current control circuit303 is connected, including the energy storage components 304 topre-power the active inrush current control circuit 303. It should beunderstood that the power supply 300 depicted in FIG. 3 may includeadditional components and that some of the components described hereinmay be removed and/or modified without departing from a scope of thepower supply 300.

The power supply 300 comprises an alternating current (AC) power source301 coupled to a PFC boost converter 302. The PFC boost converter 302comprises a full-wave bridge rectifier formed by four diodes D1-D4305-308, inductor L1 309, boost diode D5 311, resistor R1 310, bulkcapacitor C, a first N-channel Field Effect Transistor (FET) switch Q1312 and a second N-channel FET switch Q2 313. The PFC boost converter302 is to change the wave form of the input current to improve a powerfactor. Resistor R1 310 is a sense resistor to monitor input current inthe PFC control circuit 302. Second N-channel FET switch Q2 313 is toactively control inrush current charging the bulk capacitor C 314 atinitial application of input power. The PFC boost converter 302 furthercomprises a PFC controller 316 that is to take input from resistor R1,power source 301 and bulk capacitor C 314, V_(C), and correct powerfactor and regulate the bulk capacitor voltage.

In such example the power supply 300 comprises a PFC boost converter 302but in other implementations, power supply 300 may comprise other PFCssuch as a buck-boost PFC converter and a buck PFC converter.

Other examples of switches Q1 312 and Q2 313 may includeelectromechanical devices, electrical devices, switching voltageregulators, transistors, relays, logic gates, binary state logics, orother type of electrical device that may interrupt the flow to the bulkcapacitor 314. The bulk capacitor 314 may be a hardware component usedto store energy electrostatically in an electrical field.

The power supply 300 further comprises the active inrush current controlcircuit 303 electrically coupled to the first N-channel Field EffectTransistor (FET) switch Q1 312 and to a second N-channel FET switch Q2313, such that the active inrush current control circuit 303 providesthe switches 312 and 313 with an active inrush current control sequence.The switches 312 and 313 are to open and close, allowing or avoidingcurrent to pass towards the bulk capacitor 314, based on the activeinrush current control sequence received from the active inrush currentcontrol circuit 303. The active inrush current control circuit 303 isconnected to a supercapacitor 304 to power the active inrush currentcontrol circuit 303 prior to operation of the AC power source 301. Thesupercapacitor 304 is, in turn, connected to the AC power source 301 tobe pre-charged and recharged once the AC power source 301 is powered-upand has reached equilibrium.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an example method 400 for pre-powering anactive inrush control circuit in power supplies by energy storagecomponents electrically coupled to the active inrush current controlcircuit. Although execution of method 400 is described below withreference to the power supply 100 of FIG. 1, other suitable powersupplies or systems for the execution of method 400 may be utilized,such as power supplies of FIGS. 2 and 3. Additionally, implementation ofmethod 400 is not limited to such examples.

At block 401 of method 400, the energy storage component 105, which iselectrically coupled to the active inrush current control circuit 104 inthe power supply 100, powers the active inrush current control circuit104 prior to operation of the power source 101.

At block 402 of method 400, the power source 101 powers the bulkcapacitor 103 generating the inrush current in the power supply 100.

At block 403 of method 400, the active inrush current control circuit104 controls the inrush current to the bulk capacitor 103 by providingan active inrush current control sequence to the switches of the powersupply 100, for example, switches located in a PFC control circuit 102of the power supply 100. The switches of the power supply 100 open anddose, allowing or avoiding current from the power source to reach thebulk capacitor 103, based on the active inrush current control sequencereceived.

In some examples, the energy storage components 105 also power theactive inrush current control circuit 104 after power from the powersource 101 has ceased, such that the active inrush current controlcircuit 104 is able to provide the active inrush current controlsequence to the switches when the power supply 100 is not working.

By powering the active inrush current control circuit 104, by thepre-charged energy storage components 105, prior to operation, duringoperation and after operation of the power source 101 in the powersupply 100, the bulk capacitor 103 and the rest of components of thepower supply 100 are always protected against damage caused by theinrush current, even when the power source 101 is not operating.

Although the flowchart of FIG. 4 shows a specific order of performanceof certain functionalities, method 400 is not limited to that order. Forexample, the functionalities shown in succession in the flowchart may beperformed in a different order, may be executed concurrently or withpartial concurrence, or a combination thereof. In some examples,functionalities described herein in relation to FIG. 4 may be providedin combination with functionalities described herein in relation to anyof FIGS. 1-3 and 5.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example computing device 500 with aprocessing resource to execute instructions in a machine-readablestorage medium for pre-energizing an active inrush control circuit inpower supplies by energy storage components electrically coupled to theactive inrush current control circuit. It should be understood that thecomputing device 500 depicted in FIG. 5 may include additionalcomponents and that some of the components described herein may beremoved and/or modified without departing from a scope of the computingdevice 500.

The computing device 500 is depicted as including a processing resource501 to execute instruction 503-505 in a machine-readable storage medium502. Specifically, the processing resource 501 of the computing device500 executes instructions 503 to cause the energy storage components 511electrically coupled to the active inrush current control circuit 510 inthe power supply 506 to power the active inrush current control circuit510 prior to operation of a power source 507 of the power supply 506.

The processing resource 501 of the computing device 500 also executesinstructions 504 to cause the power source 507 to power the bulkcapacitor 509 of the power supply 506 through the PFC control circuit508. The PFC control circuit 508 is to correct nonlinearities of powersupply 506. The power source 507 generates at the same time, the inrushcurrent.

The processing resource 501 of the computing device 500 also executesinstructions 505 to cause the inrush current control circuit 510 tocontrol the inrush current to the bulk capacitor 509 by applying anactive inrush current control sequence to the switches of the PFCcontrol circuit 508.

In some examples, the processing resource 501 may execute instructionsto cause the energy storage component 511 to power the active inrushcurrent control circuit 510 after the power from the power source hasceased, by applying an active inrush current control sequence to theswitches of the PFC control circuit 508.

As used herein, a “processing resource” 501 may be at least one of acentral processing unit (CPU), a semiconductor-based microprocessor, agraphics processing unit (GPU), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)configured to retrieve and execute instructions, other electroniccircuitry suitable for the retrieval and execution instructions storedon a machine-readable storage medium, or a combination thereof.Processing resource 501 may fetch, decode, and execute instructionsstored on machine-readable storage medium 502 to perform thefunctionalities described above in relation to instructions 503-505.Processing resource 501 may fetch, decode, and execute instructionsstored on machine-readable storage medium 502 to perform thefunctionalities described above in relation to instructions 503-505. Inother examples, the functionalities of the instructions of themachine-readable storage medium 502 may be implemented in the form ofelectronic circuitry, in the form of executable instructions encoded ona machine-readable storage medium, or a combination thereof. The storagemedium may be located either in the computing device executing themachine-readable instructions, or remote from but accessible to thecomputing device (e.g., via a computer network) for execution.

As used herein, a “machine-readable storage medium” may be anyelectronic, magnetic, optical, or other physical storage apparatus tocontain or store information such as executable instructions, data, andthe like. For example, any machine-readable storage medium describedherein may be any of Random Access Memory (RAM), volatile memory,non-volatile memory, flash memory, a storage drive (e.g., a hard drive),a solid state drive, any type of storage disc (e.g., a compact disc, aDVD, etc.), and the like, or a combination thereof. Further, anymachine-readable storage medium described herein may be non-transitory.In examples described herein, a machine-readable storage medium or mediamay be part of an article (or article of manufacture). An article orarticle of manufacture may refer to any manufactured single component ormultiple components.

In some examples, respective instructions 503-505, may be part of aninstallation package that, when installed, may be executed by theprocessing resource 501 to implement the functionalities describedabove. In such examples, machine-readable storage medium 502 may be aportable medium, such as a CD, DVD, or flash drive, or a memorymaintained by a server from which the installation package can bedownloaded and installed. In other examples, instructions 4503-5052 maybe respectively part of an application, applications, or component(s)already installed on devices including processing resource 501. In suchexamples, the memory-readable storage medium 502 may include memory suchas a hard drive, solid state drive, or the like. In some examples,functionalities described herein in relation to FIG. 5 may be providedin combination with functionalities described herein in relation to anyof FIGS. 1-4.

Pre-powering inrush current control circuits in power supplies asdescribed herein may be useful for improving control and consistencyover power supply designs by avoiding using temperature-dependentresistive elements and low impedance components bypassing the resistiveelements as elements of the inrush current control circuit. The solutionalso provides more control over the active inrush current controlsequence applied to switches of the power supply by introducing acontroller, microcontroller or control IC in the inrush current controlcircuit that is powered by the pre-charged energy storage componentsprior to operation of the power supply and also after power supply isturned off.

All of the features disclosed in this specification (including anyaccompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the elementsof any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in anycombination, except combinations where at least some of such featuresand/or elements are mutually exclusive.

1. A power supply comprising: a power source to generate an inrushcurrent; an active inrush current control circuit that is electricallycoupled between the power source and a bulk capacitor and that is tocontrol inrush current to the bulk capacitor; and an energy storagecomponent electrically coupled to the active inrush current controlcircuit that, when pre-charged, is to power the active inrush currentcontrol circuit prior to operation of the power source, wherein theenergy storage component is a suercapacitor, a battery, ahybrid-capacitor-battery component, or combinations thereof.
 2. Thepower supply of claim 1, wherein the energy storage component is furtherto power the active inrush current control circuit after power from thepower source has ceased.
 3. (canceled)
 4. The power supply of claim 1,comprising at least one switch to connect and disconnect the bulkcapacitor from the power source.
 5. The power supply of claim 4, whereinthe active inrush current control circuit comprises a controller togenerate an active inrush current control sequence to be applied to theat least one switch.
 6. The power supply of claim 5, wherein thecontroller is a microcontroller or a control integrated circuit.
 7. Thepower supply of claim 1, wherein the active inrush current controlcircuit is electrically coupled between the power source and the bulkcapacitor by interposition of a power factor correction control circuit.8. The power supply of claim 1, comprising at least one switch that ispart of the power factor correction control circuit.
 9. The power supplyof claim 1, comprising an output converter electrically coupled to thebulk capacitor.
 10. The power supply of claim 9, comprising a biasconverter that is to receive energy from the bulk capacitor and toconvert the energy for control circuitry of power supply.
 11. The powersupply of claim 1, wherein the active inrush current control circuit isto pre-charge and recharge the energy storage component to apre-determined level to control inrush current to the bulk capacitor.12. The power supply of claim 11, wherein the active inrush currentcontrol circuit is connected to an element selected from a groupcomprising the power source, an energy source of a primary side of thepower supply, an energy source from a secondary side of the powersupply, the bulk capacitor and combinations thereof, and wherein theelement is to pre-charge and recharge the energy storage component. 13.The power supply of claim 1, comprising switches, wherein the switchesare selected from a group comprising, transistors, electromechanicalswitching devices, electrical switching devices, switching voltageregulators, relays, logic gates, binary state logics, and combinationsthereof.
 14. A method comprising: pre-charging an energy storagecomponent, wherein the energy storage component is a supercapacitor, abattery, a hybrid-capacitor-battery component, or combinations thereof;powering, by the energy storage component electrically coupled to anactive inrush current control circuit in a power supply, the activeinrush current control circuit prior to operation of a power source;powering, by the power source, a bulk capacitor; controlling, by theinrush current control circuit, the inrush current to the bulkcapacitor.
 15. The method of claim 14, comprising powering, by theenergy storage component, the active inrush current control circuitafter power from the power source has ceased.
 16. The method of claim14, comprising powering, by a power source, the energy storage componentprior to a subsequent operation of the power source.
 17. The method ofclaim 14, when the power supply has reached equilibrium, comprisingrecharging, by a power source, the energy storage component.
 18. Themethod of claim 14, actively measuring, by the active current inrushcontrol circuit, a first amount of inrush current coming from the powersource and determining a second amount of inrush current that is allowedto pass to the bulk capacitor.
 19. A non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium comprising instructions that when executed by a processorcauses the processor to: cause a pre-charged energy storage componentelectrically coupled to an active inrush current control circuit in apower supply to power the active inrush current control circuit prior tooperation of a power source of the power supply, wherein the energystorage component is a suercapacitor, a battery, ahybrid-capacitor-battery component, or combinations thereof; cause thepower source to power a bulk capacitor; and cause the inrush currentcontrol circuit to control the inrush current to the bulk capacitor byapplying an active inrush current control sequence to at least oneswitch of the power supply.
 20. The non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium comprising including the instructions of claim 19,comprising instructions to cause the energy storage component to powerthe active inrush current control circuit after the power form the powersource has ceased.